Two Coast Guardsmen Dead In Mishap

Two crewmen from a Coast Guard patrol boat are dead after their boat overturned on the icy Niagara River along the U.S.-Canada border late Friday night. Both were among four crewmen rescued, but died in a hospital a short time later.

The 21-foot, rigid-hull inflatable was found floating bow up soon after midnight Saturday on a portion of the lower Niagara River leading into Lake Ontario that is divided down the middle by the international border.

"A 4-foot wave hit the bow of the boat, swamping it and flipping it over," said Adam Wine, chief petty officer at the Coast Guard's Buffalo station.

The dead were identified as Scott Chism, 25, a boatswain mate from Lakeside, Calif., and Seaman Chris Ferreby, 23, a native of Morristown, N.J.. Both in cardiac arrest and suffering from hypothermia when they were pulled out of the water about 2 miles east of the mouth of the lower Niagara, Wine said.

They were listed in critical condition through the night but both died Saturday morning, said Wine. Chism was married with two children and Ferreby and his wife had an infant.

"Our thoughts and prayers go out to the family and friends of the boat crew from Station Niagara," said Rear Adm. James D. Hull, Ninth Coast Guard District Commander.

"Our people risk their lives every day to keep our waterways safe. It is a great tragedy when members of our family are hurt in service to their country. May god bless them and keep them safe," Hull continued.

The other crewmen, machinist mates Michael Moss and William Simpson, were conscious during the rescue. They both recovered quickly after being treated for hypothermia and were expected to be released from a hospital later Saturday, Wine said.

The boat had left around 7:40 p.m. Friday from Youngstown, a small town 20 miles northwest of Buffalo, on a law-enforcement patrol. A major part of the crew's mission was to intercept any illegal immigration across the border.

River conditions had been choppy Friday night, with waves of about 1 to 2 feet and occasional swells as high as 3 to 4 feet, Wine said.

The crew was supposed to report in every half-hour but never did, and a multi-jurisdictional search by air and sea began about two hours after the boat had left port.

The rescue was hampered by heavy snow. A fire rescue boat located and rescued the four men, but it was not immediately not clear how long the crew had been in the water.